Dock levelers, both of the horizontal and vertical varieties, are commonly found in the loading docks of warehouses and other facilities where large items are regularly loaded onto and/or unloaded off of trucks or other freight vehicles. Typically, while in operation, a dock leveler extends between a first location on or immediately adjacent to the floor of the loading dock and a second location either in or immediately adjacent to the interior of a freight vehicle that is being loaded or unloaded. The dock leveler then provides a bridge between the loading dock and the bed of the freight vehicle. The position of the dock leveler is adjusted in order to accommodate for variations in the elevation of the freight vehicle's interior relative to the floor of the loading dock as the freight vehicle is being loaded and/or unloaded.
One shortcoming of dock levelers in general has to do with the fact that they are not continuous, solid structures. As such, dock levelers allow environmental conditions (e.g., cold air, rain, snow, sleet, etc.) to enter the loading docks to which they are attached.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide novel dock leveler sealing systems that impede adverse environmental conditions from entering the loading docks to which the dock levelers are attached. It would also be desirable to provide methods for manufacturing such dock leveler sealing systems.